1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to methods and devices for clearing combat areas of unexploded mines and other munitions.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Recently, there has been a proliferation of land mines and armed munitions with faulty fuzes in certain countries which presents a considerable hazard to travelers, animals and particularly small children. As yet these objects contain no self-destruct capability. The largest population of mines are of the anti-personnel type, which more often maim than kill. Though less in number, anti-tank mines and unexploded bombs present a greater problem to vehicular traffic and most importantly to large and costly mine removal equipment. The easiest method of removing anti-personnel mines is a lightly armored rake, that does not have to penetrate deeply into the ground. This, however is much too dangerous when more deeply buried anti-tank mines, some using shaped charges, are also present. Another proposed method is to attach hundreds of explosive charges to a large net, which can then be deployed over a large area in a mine field. The charges each have a fuse interconnected electrically or pyrotechnically to the other fuzes, so that the charges reinforce one another in destroying surface and buried mines. This approach requires very specialized deployment vehicles and tends to be cumbersome, expensive and slow. There has been some success in mapping mine fields with radar, but there is a need for a safe means to use this information